Happened to pass by Romona Keveza Couture today when reading an article about wedding gown and was caught by two of her wedding gowns showcase in the article (see below for the photos that caught my eyes!). For those who know me well probably know that I am someone who likes very simple yet unique things. Romona Keveza’s Collection and Legend by Romona Keveza have some wonderful dresses that excite me (other than my all-time favourite – Vera Wang). For viewing more of her designs, check out: http://www.romonakeveza.com/

If you have great sexy legs, why not show them off?! Who says wedding gown has to be white colour?

A while ago I offered to arrange the bridal bouquet, boutonnieres and corsages for my cousin’s wedding as my gift to him and his wife. Knowing that the theme colour of the day is purple, I have arranged a really nice bouquet with purple vanda orchid, purple hyacinth and off-white ranunculus for the bride and matching purple vanda orchid boutonniere for the groom. The wonderful scent of purple hyacinth has made the day merrier. For the corsages, I have arranged pink vanda orchid for the grandmas and parents as well as purple and off-white eustoma for the siblings. The happy couple greatly appreciated my assistance since they have no idea with regards to anything related to flowers.

Marrying couples all have different priorities when it comes to the allocation of money for their wedding. Some might not think flowers are important but some might put it as the first priority. There is no doubt that pretty flowers can add nice touch to a unique wedding simulating your eyes as well as your nose. With regards to usage of flowers in a wedding, decoration is the main part. Other than decoration, flowers play an important role in bridal bouquet, boutonnieres and corsages as well.

When choosing the flowers you want for your wedding, start with listing out the blooms you like and dislike. Then, you will need to consider the blooms you love / want according to the following factors:

– Will they match your wedding theme / mood?

– Are these flowers affordable?

– Are they in season at the time of your wedding?

– Are there any cultural concerns associated with the colour or the type of flowers (either in a good or in

a bad way)?

The next thing to do is to communicate what you have listed with your chosen florist. Also, you might want to discuss your expectations on the decoration and if there is any theme to your wedding. It is always a good idea to show some reference photos (either ones you gathered from magazines, websites or even weddings you have been to) for better communication and brainstorming between the florist and yourself. A professional florist should be able to provide you with sincere opinions and support.

Not sure which flowers to use for your wedding, stay tuned for the next posting when I reveal more about various pretty blooms that might be ideal for your wedding.

Keith announced the great news of his engagement with Jovi during one of our family dinners a few months ago, the whole family was very happy and my grandma bursted into happy tears.

28 March was Jovi & Keith’s wedding and it is actually the first in the family of my generation. I am a wedding planner but I didn’t get involved with the arrangement of their wedding since they said they just want to keep things simple and they could probably handle things by themselves. However, I volunteered to take care of the bouquet and all corsages as my wedding gift to them since I do not really like to give “lai see” as a gift (note: “lai see” is red pocket similar to those given out during Chinese New Year with money as a gift to the couple) and I gave them a few tips and reminders. The bouquet I arranged was really pretty. I loved it very much myself. With purple vanda orchids, purple hyacinth and off-white ranunculus, really pretty. (Speaking of flowers, I will write a posting shortly to provide more information to soon-to-marry couples and those who are interested)

On the 28th, I didn’t need to help out for the traditional “bride pick-up” session in the morning, but I went anyways since I wanted to make sure the flowers I have ordered are of expectation. I also wanted to take some snap shots of the fun time as well as practice my photography skills. I woke up bright and early that morning (even earlier than going to work!) and travelled all the way to Tuen Mun to join the crowd. The “bride pick up” session was, as usual, very fun to watch. Caught some great photos while my cousin and the groomen went through the various stages of games. Upon mission accomplished, we went back to my uncle’s house for the Chinese Tea Ceremony then took a break for lunch.

I arrived the banquet venue quite early since I need to help out as part of the hosting family. Dinner started at alround 8:30pm with the ceremony. When I saw my cousin marched in with Jovi, I bursted into tiny happy tears. It felt really different to see one of my family members getting married than to see my clients’. I guess this is the difference between viewing the whole scene from a guest’s point of view vs. from a wedding planner standing beside / behide the couple. The night went great. Everyone was tired but I am sure everyone had enjoyed the day very much.

All in all, I want to send my best wishes to Keith and Jovi. Hopefully, we will celebrate a new member to our family very soon! =)

Wedding budgeting is probably the first financial project in which a couple needs to face together and it can be hectic. No matter how much you will be spending for your big day, without detail planning it can lead a couple to unhappiness and even arguments.

To tackle this project, the first thing a couple needs to do is to figure out who is responsible for what cost in the wedding. Listing out the various components of a wedding might help. Then the next step would be to look in detail the financial status of both persons and prioritize the items of a wedding to see what are affordable and how your savings should be distributed. Then each person should talk to their parents and families and find out what are the expectations and if they can help out financially for some of the items. Remember to keep cultural background as well as family traditions into consideration, especially when you are marrying someone who is from a different background to yourself. Upon discussions with the parents / families, the couple should present ideas and comments from their side to each other. Lastly, go through all information gathered in deep thoughts and come up with the initial financial plan. I said “initial” because usually when you get going to confirm vendors, couples tend to under estimated how much they need to spend.

For reference, below is a rough idea of money distribution for a wedding:

Wedding Banquet 40-50%

Ceremony Venue Usage 3%

Wedding Attire 8%

Venue Decoration 15-20%

Make-up & Hair 8-10%

Photo & Video 10-15%

Invitations 3%

Miscellaneous 5%

Of course the percentage distribution will be different according to a couple’s priority towards things. Two very important remarks are: 1) always add an extra 5-10% “emergency fund” for back up and 2) never get a loan somewhere just to have your dream wedding.

Following the 14 Feb, there is another celebration of LOVE. It’s the White Day (ホワイトデー, Howaito dē) which is celebrated in Japan, South Korea as well as Taiwan.

White Day was actually “created” by the National Confectionery Industry Association (全国飴菓子工業協同組合) in Japan back in 1978. It’s some marketing plan of the company for boosting sales. The original purpose is to act as an “echo” to Valentine’s Day where men would return gift to the women who gave them chocolate and other gifts on Valentine’s Day (in Japan, women are the ones to give chocolate to men which might be a bit different from other cultures). Since then, confectionery companies started to market white cholocate as the “return gift of choice”. But nowaways the return gifts can be edible and non-edible items such as jewelry or objects of sentimental value, or white-coloured clothing.

In my opinion, if you love someone any day can be Valentine’s Day or White Day =)

Today is 8th March and it is an important date for women around the world – International Women’s Day (IWD).

IWD is on the 8th of March every year and it is a day of global celebration of women. Throughout the years, women of different countries struggled for equality, justice, peace and development. IWD is the day where women in different regions enjoy general celebration of respect, appreciation and love towards women, to a celebration for women’s economic, political and social achievements.

On this day it is customary for men to give the women in their lives – mothers, wives, girlfriends, daughters, colleagues, etc – flowers and small gifts. In some countries, it is also observed as an equivalent of Mother’s Day, where children also give small presents to their mothers and grandmothers.